After being informed of the mission, Baines went in to prepare his things, then returned and followed Tasha to the departure station.
He was surprised when they arrived at the Darkan's pit. It was where the dragons of the Darkan family were kept, fed, and trained.
And it seemed for this mission, they'd be traveling on dragonback.
"These are my teammates," Tasha introduced the four people standing outside the pit.
There was a 5th star man, a 3-star pair of male and female, and a 4th star female like Tasha.
"This is—" Tasha's introduction was cut short when she saw Baines was no longer looking at them. He was reading the letter containing their mission details, the one she had just handed him.
"How dare you ignore the lady?" the 5th star snapped, fury flashing in his eyes. The others couldn't openly show their displeasure, but being of similar rank, he believed he had the right.
"…"
Sadly, Baines didn't satisfy his curiosity. He simply continued reading, using the man's rant as background.
The mission was to take place outside the Darkan capital. And for uninterruptions with the teleportation portals, dragon travel was necessary to save time.
'The Deplorable Brothers.'
They were infamous twin brothers known for their cruelty towards civilians. Both were 5th stars, but their combined power was enough to challenge a 6th star. The elder was the schemer, a magician. The younger was the brawn and muscle.
They were heavily involved in mass kidnappings, and it seemed they'd outdone themselves again.
This mission showed the disappearance of over 250 civilians. A number like that couldn't be ignored, so the branch family had contacted the main Darkan house for help in investigating.
After reading through, he looked up.
"Are we not moving?" Baines asked, expressionless, as he looked at Tasha.
The other teammates were surprised at the new comer treating the heir to the darkan family like a lesser, and the 5th star directly wanted to attack him.
He had ignored them all, as if they didn't even exist.
"…" Tasha said nothing and just nodded. Only she knew the potential this boy had, a little cold shoulder wouldn't take her to rage.
...
Since Baines wasn't a dragon knight, he had to share a mount with the 3th-star knight trainee.
With a great flap of wings, the dragons soared into the sky.
On the journey, Baines thought of ways to contact the information networks without raising the Darkans' suspicions.
He went over scenarios in his head, most of which involved spending an unusually long time outside the family and them noticing his absence.
'Should I just ask?'
It wasn't the first time the thought had come. The family already knew he was searching for someone. If he asked to purchase information, it wouldn't be suspicious, however, they would definitely try to monitor or even control his access.
They might even direct him to an agency under their own influence.
Five hours later...
"We've arrived."
A tall black tower, similar to the one in the capital, loomed ahead. It marked the territory of a Darkan branch family, the one that had requested reinforcements.
Upon their descent, a group of knights stood waiting to receive them, alongside a tall man.
"Lady Tasha." The man gave a small, knowing bow and smiled knowingly.
"Uncle…" Tasha's eyes widened.
Roderick Darkan, the younger brother of the current head of the Darkan family. His red hair spoke true of his ancient lineage. He was the leader of this branch and a 6th-star sword master.
After greetings were exchanged, they moved into Roderick's office.
Soon, Tasha, Baines, the four team members, Roderick, and another 6th star knight—the commander of the branch knights—sat down for the meeting.
"So what exactly happened, Uncle?" Tasha asked. They had read the details, however a better explanation was needed.
"That's what we're still trying to figure out," Roderick admitted. "We questioned the locals. Every one of the missing persons had told someone their destination before they left. But none of them ever returned."
A silence fell over the room.
Over 250 people had simply... disappeared.
"We visited all their supposed destinations," Roderick continued. "However, there was no signs of struggle, no aura residue, no traces of magic. It was as if they vanished into thin air."
Tasha frowned. "Then how do you know it was the Deplorable Brothers?"
"We received intelligence from the shadow unit. The brothers were spotted in the area weeks ago. After two weeks, it was strange that there was no activity, and this happened. This is exactly their style—mass kidnappings."
Everyone nodded at the logic.
The next question was: where to start?
"How many places in the area can gather a crowd of over two hundred?" Baines asked from his corner.
The others turned to him in confusion. Why was he asking that?
Tasha, however, understood his intent.
"Only an auction, a fighting arena... or the church," she said.
"And how many auctions are in this region?" Baines asked the branch head.
"There's one," Roderick replied, "but they held an event just last month."
"And the fighting arena?"
"We already searched it. It's clean." Roderick's eyes were starting to widen as if realizing Baines's aim.
"And the church?"
"What exactly are you getting at?" Roderick's tone sharpened, the pressure of a 6th-star exuding from him. The Church was their state religion. He wouldn't stand for anyone slandering it.
But Baines didn't flinch. His physical abilities were enough to withstand that level, considering Roderick was still an early 6th-star.
Ignoring his anger-filled face, Baines continued, "There are five general gatherings each month. One happened a few days ago... right before people started disappearing. Doesn't that sound suspicious?"
"The Church is always in the public eye. How would they openly pull off something like that? Besides, the chuech knights wouldn't stand for it."
Baines nodded at his reasoning, the church knights were really another animal, and continued,
"What if they didn't need to kidnap anyone? What if the people just walked into the church with their own two legs?" Baines said calmly. "No one would suspect a thing. And remember, one of the brothers is a magician, the schemer of the brothers. Mind manipulation is possible."
They had spent over a week trying to find a lead with no result. But now, Baines had just handed them one.
"I understand your reasoning," Roderick said, "but we can't just surround the church without proof. Even the main family would face repercussions."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
The Church of Five Suns was an unquestionable authority in the empire. No one could just begin accusing them.
Accusing them recklessly could spark a war.
"Then I guess," Baines said, rising to his feet, "it's high time we visit the church."